Fire drop
by wolf of infinity
Summary: The boy took a deep, shuddering breath, but the words still came out as something between a choked sob and a cry; "He's s-still inside!" Denmark visits Norway, only to find the house enveloped by fire. One-shot. Warning: Profanities


_Hm, this idea just suddenly came to me__~ It's a little dramatic, and a little fluffy, a little angsty and a little cheesy… It could be seen as Denmark x Norway, I suppose, but although I sort of like that pairing, it's not heavily implied in this little one-shot, and thus, you can read it as whatever you like ^^ Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy it :3_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia – Axis Powers_

_oOo_

Denmark hummed cheerfully to himself where he walked with long, confident strides down the small yet cosy road, with tall trees towering on each side like a tunnel of green leaves and flower buds. Spring was a lovely time! So lovely, in fact, that he had felt a sudden urge to pay Norway a visit. Which was why he was now walking down the road leading towards Norway's house, having opted to walk the last of the way to view the scenery.

Sure, he might seem like a bit of a cheerful – and dumb, some would claim – simpleton. Sure, he might to many be known as a powerful warrior, despite the insignificant size of his country. Still, even though he'd never admit it out loud, he was quite sentimental at times like this. Being a simpleton might be a good thing; instead of wasting time overly contemplating and dilly-dallying things, he took the time needed to enjoy the simple things in his life.

Such as the idyllic road – Norway sure had a great home, even though Denmark would insist his home was greater –, the birds chirping in the trees, the sun glinting through puffy, light clouds, and the delightful scent of… smoke? What?

Denmark froze, his eyebrows squinting together as he definitely felt the distinct smell of smoke, and not of the healthy bon-fire-kind either. Putting a hand above his eyes he peered through the greenery, and felt himself give a start when he realized that thick, black smoke was making its way up to the skies. And it was coming from the general direction of Norway's house…

His peaceful stride moved into a trot before he took of and sprinted down the road, the smell getting thicker and the air getting hotter as every step led him closer to his destination. As he rounded a group of bushes, he felt himself forgetting how to breathe as he stared at the sight that met him.

The fairly large, yet not too posh building was enveloped by hungry flames, devouring it from both the outside and inside. Firemen were busy shouting and trying to get the fire in control, and Denmark noticed one of them constraining a small, screaming and trashing boy – Iceland!

He ran over, reminding himself to take a breath as he felt lightheaded.

"Ice!" he called out, and the silver-haired boy looked up quickly, his face terribly pale and tears making their way down his cheeks. It was rare to see the usually composed and cool boy look so… emotional wasn't the right word – he looked absolutely broken with terror.

"D-Denmark!" the boy tore himself from the fireman's grip and ran up to him. He then proceeded to cry something in rapid Icelandic, to which the Dane shook his head, gripping the boy by the shoulders.

"Calm down, I can't understand you-"

The boy took a deep, shuddering breath, but the words still came out as something between a choked sob and a cry.

"He's s-still inside!"

The words made all blood drain from Denmark's face as he stared at the boy and then at the house.

"H-he's been d-down with a cold, and I… I was about to go visit him…" Iceland cried, shaking his head with wide eyes, clearly in a state of shock.

In some cases, it was good to be a simpleton. Instead of thinking rationally, he was a man of action, and this called for action. Now.

Denmark darted over and leaped in front of one of the firemen's hoses, letting himself be sprayed with icy water, which he didn't even notice. Getting out his handkerchief – thank God he'd been carrying one – he wet it and tied it around his mouth and nose before sprinting over to the entrance, running inside before anyone had the time to stop him.

The heat was unbearable, hitting against his face and body with violent force, as though it was hissing at him; '_what are you doing inside my territory, fool?_' He paid it no mind, squinting through the heavy smoke – which luckily wasn't so bad here that he couldn't at least see some details and contours.

It seemed the fire had started up on the second floor. This caused his heart to leap into his throat. If Norway had a cold, like Iceland said, he was probably in his bed room - on the second floor…

Having no time to hesitate, he reached the stairwell, making his way up, and trying to stay as low as he could in order to avoid the worst of the choking substance chasing off the oxygen rather effectively.

Something roared, and his knees trembled when he heard something fall somewhere down there. He didn't dare to turn around, he didn't have time, damn it!

The smoke was definitely thicker here, and he was almost crouched down in order to see anything, struggling to make his way down the corridor.

"N-Norge!" he cried out, his voice sounding oddly thin and weak in his own ears, though it might just be the furious flames choking his voice. There was no reply, and even though he had somewhat expected it, it made him feel lightheaded and weakened – wait, no that was probably the smoke's doing. Oh damn, that was not good…!

He coughed roughly into the handkerchief, sinking even lower to the floor, his hand trailing the wall so he wouldn't get lost. Norway's room was the second to the left. Wasn't it…? Suddenly feeling very uncertain, he quickened his speed. No time to hesitate, damn it, don't slow down! He kicked himself inwardly.

'_Damn it, Den, you're a god damn fighter, you don't just go insecure bastard because of some stupid flames…! This'll sort out, he's fine and – ow, what the fuck?'_

He had walked into something, stumbling and nearly falling over it before catching himself. Looking down, he blinked, and then gave a sound sounding like a mix between a cry and a yelp.

There, lying against the wall, unmoving was Norway. Seemingly, he'd manage to get out of his room and had tried to escape. Denmark briefly felt a pang of fear and also thankfulness to every God he'd ever heard of – if he'd been walking just slightly more to the side, he'd have missed the other…

"Oh Norge…" he whispered before choking down a new cough, finding it steadily harder to breathe. Taking of his wet coat he wrapped it around the smaller frame of Norway and lifted him up to his chest with some difficulty, making sure the other's head was hidden at least somewhat from the smoke by his chest and the coat.

Then he turned and stumbled back down the corridor. His heart thumped heavily in his chest, which in turn had gotten terribly tight. It kept receiving minimal amount of oxygen and a lot of all these other gasses that were in this smoke. It was just about as healthy as all those disgusting burgers America devoured, or England's food…

This wasn't good, why was he think about things he shouldn't? Stay focused, he reminded himself. Focused and clear-minded, and wait was that two stair wells before him…?

He'd made it to the end when a new roar exploded behind him, and a wave of heat hit him, making him cry out slightly. Something was falling, and soon the air wasn't just heavy with smoke but dust and debris too, effectively blocking any light or view from reaching the Dane's vision.

Stumbling forward, he nearly fell down the stair steps as they suddenly appeared in front of him. A moment of panic filled his mind before he killed it quickly. He knew these steps – he'd counted them many a time when he was bored with Norway ignoring him while he was visiting.

23 steps. He's stepped down, what – three…? Yes, three… Taking the steps as quickly as he dared, he reached the last step, and finally he was down on safe ground. Or so he thought. The next thing he knew, he'd tripped over some fallen debris and somehow managed to twist so that he took the impact, Norway falling limply onto his chest in the process, knocking the little air he had out of his lungs.

For a moment he could just lay there, panic racing through his mind as he realized he couldn't breathe – but then he managed to heave a gasp, only to find the air thick and unsettling on his lungs, causing him to cough.

He somehow managed to get up, his eyes swimming and unable to focus. Where the hell was the exit…? He held Norway close, feeling as though the other, fairly lithe man weighed a ton in his tired, somewhat numb arms.

Not a sound was heard from the other, and he felt himself fearing that he was carrying a dead Norway in his arms – no, he couldn't think like that! Stumbling forward, he managed to step around the debris due to the shimmering light of the flames, which in all honesty didn't help much. Something screeched and a sensation of dread filled his veins, making his blood freeze.

Fear and urgency overtook his sense and he darted forward in a random direction, hoping, _praying_ that it would lead somewhere. He knew that sound, the dreadful rumble of splintering wood and the whine of bending metal – the sound of a building collapsing…

He couldn't feel his feet touch the floor, and at some point, he even stopped caring that he couldn't seem to breathe anymore. The only thought that ran through his mind like a simple message played by a broken player, over and over, filled every fibre of his body.

_Get him out of here… get him the fuck out of here!_

A small light grew larger in front of him, and then he leaped through an opening just as he heard everything collapsing behind him. He kept running, now in full light and fresh air that was by now so stranger to him that his lungs didn't know how to retrieve it.

He heard shouting, crying, felt arms take Norway from his grip, touching his body – a choked moan left his lips without him really realizing he was the one who uttered the desperate, strangled sound.

_Get him out of here… get out… out…_

Darkness seeped into his vision as he toppled over, and he didn't even feel himself hit the soft, welcoming spring grass…

oOo

Holy crap, his lungs ached…! It was the first thing he really noticed after waking up, unable to open his eyes to find out where he was yet. The thought didn't really even cross his mind, as he was too busy slowly coming to his senses again. The air was clean and although the scent was rather uncomfortable, it was 100 % oxygen… Oh well, perhaps not 100 % but… the thought drifted of tiredly.

He felt heavy and exhausted, his body aching and itching uncomfortably. As his hearing seemed to catch up with the rest of his slowly wakening system, he heard steady beeping – wow, it matched his heartbeat perfectly… cool…! - and soft breathing that he slowly realized wasn't his own.

Someone else was there…? He struggled to wake up fully and open his eyes. Finally he managed, although his vision was hazy as he blinked slowly, almost too tired to keep them open.

A small gasp, then someone spoke quietly. He blinked again, slowly turning his head to squint at the person next to his bed. He found that there were actually several of them, some standing a few feet away, as though they didn't want to interrupt his personal space – not that the Dane considered such a thing to be of any great importance anyway, not like…

"N-Norge…!" he choked out, his memory suddenly flooding back as he woke up more, fear filling his body yet again. What had happened to him? Was he ok? He hadn't d-d… - he couldn't even think the thought - he was fine, right? He had to be…!

"I'm here, Danmark, right here," a voice said, and the tone wasn't the usual monotone one he'd gotten used to. This was the voice Norway only used when he was thoroughly affected by some heavy emotion or the other.

Denmark managed to somehow focus on him, and looked the other over, taking in the bandages – probably for burns or something – and the pale shade of his skin, as well as the hospital pyjamas he wore. The dull blue eyes shimmered with something Denmark couldn't quite recognize, and his hair, usually so soft and elegant, was a mess.

He couldn't utter a single word, too relieved to even form coherent thoughts. He realized suddenly that tears were running silently down his cheeks as a tired smile spread across his face, but couldn't bring himself to care. Thank God… Thank you, thank you, _thank you_…!

"Shh, it's okay, we're both okay," Norway said quietly, gently wiping away the tears with trembling fingers. Gone were the protective roughness and the chilly monotone act that had served as an emotional barrier ever since he'd ruled the seas as a Viking. Now, the real Norway shone through, if only just for a while – the side that was sweet and caring, soft and welcoming. Denmark had only seen it a few times, and he valued every short moment of it.

He found himself unable to speak, his throat not only sore and dry as a desert, but also clogged up with emotions. Emotions he usually hid behind his bright smile and dazzling – and sometimes obnoxious – attitude.

However, he soon found that words weren't necessary. Norway, who sat on the side of his bed bent over and embraced him, burying his face into his shirt. Denmark slowly felt himself relax and managed to lift his arms, holding around the lither man as he closed his eyes, listening to their breathing. The scent of fire and smoke still lingered, but it seemed unimportant as he breathed in the scent of the man crying silently against his collar bone.

Slowly, he allowed his eyes to drift shut again, thoroughly exhausted and moved by the ordeal and thankful that they didn't need words to describe it. Right now, there were no past arguments or pain, no previous fears or earlier disagreements. Right now, the only things that were important were their hearts beating in unison against one another and gentleness as a pleasant spring breeze entered through the window and the world finally seemed at peace again.

oOo

_Just a little note; I used the Norwegian and Danish equivalents of their names in the dialogues~_

_Norge = Norway_

_Danmark = Denmark_

_Hope you liked it! Would be nice if you could give me a review to tell me what you thought ^^_


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